Press release from Studioki:

Melbourne - New animation company Studioki today announced its debut into the Melbourne production scene. Studioki is the vision of three animation professionals Steve Bristow, Rod Clifton and Christian Hart.

Steve Bristow, recently back in his hometown of Melbourne after many years in Asia, is an award-winning animation producer and director, and has worked on animated TV Series and commercials for clients across Asia. Bristow was a director on the JCC/MDEC co-production Saladin.

Rod Clifton, well-known veteran in Melbourne animation circles is ex-Animagrafx and other major Melbourne animation studios, and is the animator behind many of those cute Target commercials that have entertained Australian audiences for years.

Christian Hart, formerly with Animagrafx, Iloura, and other Melbourne studios, with ten years at the keyboard has notched up hundreds of TV ads for well-known brands including Mazda, Village Cinemas and Melbourne Aquarium. Hart was also an animator on the Animalia TV series.

Studioki believes its strength is character animation. "We have all been immersed in character animation throughout our careers", said Bristow. "Character and story are our passion, and we all have our specialties - Rod can bring anything to life, Christian is a technical guru, and I'm a producer and director, so together we are the whole character animation package".

While Studioki's immediate goal is to secure TV ads and Screen design projects, the long-term goal is to develop original transmedia animation properties. Studioki is currently working on a series of short webisodes it plans to launch online, while banging the Studioki drum to get a foothold in the marketplace.